Best Medicine: What makes YOU laugh? (lol)

Let’s say something humorous transpires in your general vicinity. Suddenly, an involuntary, simultaneous contraction of 15 facial muscles occurs in tandem with a rhythmic series of noises. 

“Laughter is a reflex,” said author, Arthur Koestler, “but unique in that it serves no apparent biological purpose. One might call it a luxury reflex.” 

One might… but one usually doesn’t (lmao).

What’s Funny to You? 

Laughter is universal but when it comes to what produces laughter, well, that’s a much different story. From memes to stand-up, rom-com to New Yorker cartoons, sight gags to puns — humor is very much a matter of opinion. And comedic opinions can fluctuate widely. Let’s not forget what happened when Ray Liotta told Joe Pesci he was “funny” in Goodfellas.

“The Best Medicine”

Contrary to Koestler’s analysis above, laughter serves a crucial biological purpose. It is quite good for our health.

Steady doses of giggles can:

1. Fortify Relationship and Friendship Bonds

While both sexes rate “sense of humor” as a top-three trait, men and women tend to embrace merriment in different ways. Studies find that men are more likely to initiate laughter. However, women laugh about 126 percent more than men. 

This combination seems to work since couples who laugh together more often report being in higher-quality relationships. This could have something to do with the endorphin release of laughter fostering two important emotions: safety and togetherness.

A similar dynamic occurs within non-romantic bonds. Deeply connected people experience a sense of speaking the same language. In the realm of humor, this is where inside jokes can inspire closeness. There’s nothing like having something only you and one other person truly “gets.”

2. Build Resilience

Ingesting a narcotic drug is one way to induce a feeling of euphoria. Fortunately, laughter — especially in a time of stress — has been shown to release a similar amount of euphoria as an addictive opioid. The only “side effect” of chuckling, however, is that it builds up our resilience and helps us better regulate our emotions.

3. Improve Memory

Laughter reduces the presence of cortisol, a potentially dangerous stress hormone. This process has been found to sharpen our ability to remember and recall more efficiently. 

Here’s more:

Plus, Laughter Just Feels Good

Hey, there’s gotta be something incredible about this luxury reflex if we have so many words for “laugh” (titter, chortle, snicker, cackle, guffaw, snigger, snort, etc.); for “funny” (hilarious, humorous, comical, droll, hysterical, amusing, witty, mirthful, etc.); and for “joke” (gag, one-liner, witticism, wisecrack, riposte, jest, prank, jibe, etc.). 

Yet somewhere over the years, we, unfortunately, manage to lose track of thousands of chuckles. Children laugh, on average, 400 times a day. For adults, that number is a mere 15. 

Every house or apartment comes with a medicine chest but you’d have to put in a special request for a whoopee cushion. If laughter is indeed the best medicine, we need to find a much better balance.

I say we start a new movement to help recapture some of those healing luxury reflexes. We can call it Puns Not Pills!

Here’s a video to get things started:

What makes YOU laugh?